Lawmakers look for answers to Indiana heroin crisis

Troy Riggs, Public Safety Director for Indianapolis, listens at an interagency meeting in Noblesville City Hall to talk about heroin and the growing uptick of this and other drugs in Indiana, Noblesville, Tuesday, July 01, 2014. Robert Scheer/The Star

Jim Merritt (left), Indiana Senate, with Susan Brooks, U.S. House of Representatives, at an an interagency meeting in Noblesville City Hall to talk about heroin and the growing uptick of this and other drugs in Indiana, Noblesville, Tuesday, July 01, 2014. Robert Scheer/The Star

Susan Brooks, U.S. House of Representatives, greets Rick Hite, IMPD's chief, at an an interagency meeting in Noblesville City Hall to talk about heroin and the growing uptick of this and other drugs in Indiana, Noblesville, Tuesday, July 01, 2014. Robert Scheer/The Star

Susan Brooks (foreground), U.S. House of Representatives, with Jim Merritt, Indiana Senate, at an an interagency meeting in Noblesville City Hall to talk about heroin and the growing uptick of this and other drugs in Indiana, Noblesville, Tuesday, July 01, 2014. Robert Scheer/The Star

Susan Brooks (left), U.S. House of Representatives, with Jim Merritt, Indiana Senate, at an an interagency meeting in Noblesville City Hall to talk about heroin and the growing uptick of this and other drugs in Indiana, Noblesville, Tuesday, July 01, 2014. Robert Scheer/The Star

Jim Merritt (left), Indiana Senate, with Susan Brooks, U.S. House of Representatives, at an an interagency meeting in Noblesville City Hall to talk about heroin and the growing uptick of this and other drugs in Indiana, Noblesville, Tuesday, July 01, 2014. Robert Scheer/The Star

Dennis Wichern, with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, at an interagency meeting in Noblesville City Hall to talk about heroin and the growing uptick of this and other drugs in Indiana, Noblesville, Tuesday, July 01, 2014. Robert Scheer/The Star

Aaron Dietz, with the Carmel Police and Hamilton and Boone County Drug Task Force, at an interagency meeting in Noblesville City Hall to talk about heroin and the growing uptick of this and other drugs in Indiana, Noblesville, Tuesday, July 01, 2014. Robert Scheer/The Star

Like this topic? You may also like these photo galleries:

Troy Riggs, Indianapolis public safety director for Indianapolis, listens at a meeting July 1, 2014, in Noblesville City Hall about heroin and the growing uptick of it and other drugs in Indiana.(Photo: Robert Scheer/The Star)Buy Photo

NOBLESVILLE — Heroin is a worsening problem in Central Indiana, law enforcement authorities and lawmakers said during a meeting Tuesday that discussed ways to combat the issue.

"This is not just a big city problem," said U.S. Rep. Susan Brooks, R-Carmel. "This is not just a suburban problem or a rural problem."

Brooks and state Sen. Jim Merritt, R-Indianapolis, heard from local, state and federal law enforcement Tuesday morning at Noblesville City Hall, who gave accounts of increasing heroin overdoses and drug-related crimes in their communities.

Troy Riggs, director of public safety for Indianapolis, said first responders have seen a 38 percent increase of heroin confiscations this year alone, as well as a record number of overdose patients and drug-related crimes.

"Some of the increases we're seeing in the Southwest District in robberies and in thefts can be directly attributed to the rise in heroin," Riggs said.

Law enforcement agencies have arrested 45 heroin traffickers in Central Indiana since September. They also have seized more than 42 pounds of the drug, according to Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent Dennis Wichern, who was at the meeting.

Police and emergency personnel said that growing presence has caused a host of problems:

Black tar heroin.(Photo: Star file)

• An increase in organized retail crime, led by distributors trading stolen merchandise for heroin.

• Reports that some heroin addicts in Marion County have been revived multiple times by emergency personnel using the overdose antidote drug naloxone.

• An increase in synthetic drug use, with some users mixing synthetic drugs with heroin and cocaine.

Getting the heroin problem under control in Indiana could take years, some officials said. Attendees suggested a multifaceted approach to address the crisis, including increased funding for treatment, more anti-drug education initiatives and tougher sentencing minimums for drug dealers.

Merritt, an advocate for tougher penalties for synthetic drug distribution, said the reports of mixing heroin and cocaine with synthetic drugs was "downright scary." After hearing from law enforcement officials, he said, he plans to reach out to school superintendents and counselors to see how vulnerable students are to heroin and other drugs.